Nevels v. Mississippi Department of Employment Security

**What Happened** Nevels, a school district employee, was fired for violating his employer's call-in policy. Instead of calling in sick himself when he was absent, Nevels had his brother call the school and give false reasons for why he couldn't come to work. The Greenwood Municipal Separate School District terminated him for this behavior. When Nevels applied for unemployment benefits, the Mississippi Department of Employment Security denied his claim, saying he was fired for misconduct. **What the Court Decided** The court sided with the state agency and upheld the denial of unemployment benefits. The judges found that Nevels had deliberately violated his employer's attendance policy by having someone else lie about his absences. This constituted "misconduct" under state law, which disqualifies workers from receiving unemployment compensation. **Why This Matters for Workers** This case shows that dishonesty about work absences can cost you both your job and your unemployment benefits. Workers need to follow their employer's call-in procedures honestly, even when dealing with personal problems. Having someone else lie on your behalf is treated the same as lying yourself and can be grounds for losing unemployment eligibility.